Venice Biennale Faces Controversy Over New Visitors' Choice Awards
Ahead of the spring opening, the Biennale faced protests concerning the participation of Russia and Israel. Organizers stated,“We reject any form of censorship in culture and art,” affirming their decision to keep the pavilions open.
On April 30, just days before the Biennale's opening week, its original jury resigned. They issued a statement explaining their intent not to consider for the Golden and Silver Lion awards any countries charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC), which would have disqualified Russia and Israel.
In response, the Biennale initiated the public vote. Only ticket holders who have visited both the Giardini and the Arsenale are eligible to cast their votes before the closing date of November 22. However, concerns have been raised regarding the ticket-tracking system's susceptibility to potential vote rigging or government influence.
Many artists have chosen to boycott the Visitors' Choice award in solidarity with the resigned jury. Nearly 100 participating artists threatened legal action when their wishes to abstain from the prize were“disregarded.” The Biennale has since pledged not to count votes for artists who explicitly withdrew their names, including Alfredo Jaar, Nolan Oswald Dennis, Zoe Leonard, Tabita Rezaire, Laurie Anderson, and Otobong Nkanga from the main exhibition, and artists representing 39 countries, such as France, Austria, the Netherlands, Britain, and Ukraine. This has substantially slimmed down the viable selection of contenders for the Visitors' Lion.
Source: Artnet News
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